I’m enjoying all of the after-action gossip and reporting on Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. Even though I knew/believed we would get an announcement yesterday, I was still pleasantly surprised by the rollout and the gleeful, sweet vibes coming off both Meghan and Harry. They are truly in love, completely besotted with each other. It reminds me a bit of Sweden’s Prince Carl-Philip and now-Princess Sophie. Carl-Philip isn’t the heir, he has an easier time with everything and less pressure overall, so he was “allowed” to marry for love, and marry someone who would have been deemed unsuitable if he was the heir. Let’s be real: if Prince William had married a once-divorced woman of color, the British papers would have lost their ever-loving minds. Which brings me to this interesting Guardian column, about how Meghan’s entrance into the royal family signals many positive things for British race relations – go here to read. As an American, I tend to believe we have the franchise on racist bulls–t, so it’s interesting to have a little window into how Meghan represents a significant shift for even just the perception of interracial dating/marriage and more in Britain.

Meghan also addressed the racist bulls–t in the interview she did with Harry. Meghan’s reaction in the interview was to talk around it for the most part, which I’m fine with. She’s marrying Harry, and she’ll be asked to “explain” race stuff for years and decades to come. She’ll have a lot of time to talk in greater depth about racism and more. Here’s the interview again:

Having taken the time to really digest all of the information we got, it does strike me that Meghan simply can’t wait to start her new life. She is 36 years old and she has no mixed feelings, no qualms about uprooting her life, ending her acting career, moving to a new country and marrying a prince. She’ll never have another day of privacy again, and she knows that and it’s clear that she’s already made up her mind. When asked about giving up her career, she said, “I don’t see it as giving anything up. I just see it as a change. It’s a new chapter, right? And also, keep in mind, I’ve been working on [Suits] for seven years. We were very, very fortunate to have that sort of longevity on a series…I’ve ticked this box, and I feel very proud of the work I’ve done there, and now it’s time to work with [Harry] as a team.”

And finally, did you know that Meghan is starting a new no-pantyhose trend for royals??

On Monday, all eyes were on Prince Harry and Meghan Markle as the couple finally announced their engagement. In addition to ogling every inch of Markle’s outfit, which included not one, but two Canadian designers, Lainey Gossip also pointed out what she wasn’t wearing: Panty hose.

This may not seem like a big deal over here in America, which is full of deviants (at least according to some British tabloids). But across the pond, the royal family seems to enforce a strict, unspoken pantyhose policy. Everyone wears them. Except for Markle, apparently.

Queen Elizabeth has been wearing panty hose for 91 years, but Kate Middleton, who often wears glossy, flesh-toned ones in public, is really the one to thank for their revival in England. According to a 2012 report, sales of nude tights went up by 46 percent at Selfridges’ after the royal wedding. Meanwhile, Wolford’s Naked style tights soared 130 percent around the same time. Sales of flesh-toned hosiery also grew 500 percent at the British supermarket chain Asda.

“Kate’s choice in sheers is fueling new descriptions such as ‘gloss’ sheers or ‘polished’ sheers,” Valerie A. Mackie, marketing director for legwear at Invista Inc., told WWD in 2012. “Her choices are helping consumers understand that wearing hosiery creates an even, cosmeticlike effect to legs, especially when summer tans have dissipated.”

[From The Cut]

Are we going to declare Meghan the savior of naked legs? Here’s the thing though… Kate wore and still wears sheer pantyhose, that’s true. But Kate does no-pantyhose too, depending on the season and depending on her dress and shoe choice. I’m just saying… Kate did no-pantyhose FIRST! Give her that, at least.

Photos courtesy of Pacific Coast News.